An Unexpected Change
by FourLeaved
Summary: Mera has been sent to protect Arthur and get him safely back to Atlantis. But what will she do when she is shot in front of his lighthouse, and Arthur has to protect her? A remake/remaster of booyah111oak2's "An Unlikely Switching of Roles" (With permission)
1. Chapter 1

**An Unlikely Switch**

Prologue:

Mera is an officer of Queen Atlanna, and her latest assignment is to protect Arthur Curry, the Queen's son and rightful heir to the throne of Atlantis. Atlanna has been notified that someone intends to kill Arthur, which would result in Orin (her half-brother) to take the throne. The Queen cannot let this happen, Orin is not fit to be King of Atlantis. So by the Queen's orders, Mera is keeping a close eye on Arthur, at a safe distance…

Chapter 1:

My name is Arthur Curry, and I am a freak. I can inhale the oxygen from water, and speak to marine life. I do not know why or how, and I frankly haven't the time to find out. I've already lost my father, the one person who accepted me for who, for what I am. He was never afraid of my abilities, he never pointed at me with a gaping mouth, he always wanted to help. Now I'm all alone, stuck manning the lighthouse, Arthur Curry the freak. I've been considering ending my life for a long time now, it looks like suffering through death is the only way to end the suffering of life. Who would even miss a frea-

 **BANG**

My suicidal thoughts are interrupted by a loud gunshot coming from outside the lighthouse. I sprint to the door only to catch a glimpse of a car speeding off. I was trying to catch the numbers on the cars plates when I noticed something human-shaped, lying still on the pavement. I rush over to see it is a beautiful red haired girl wearing a trench coat. Under the trench coat is a gunshot wound, that looks to have punctured her armour? She is wearing chainmail made of some strange turquoise metal. This isn't the time for questions she appears to be bleeding out. I lift her limp body, take her inside, and lay her softly on the couch. As I reach for the phone to call an ambulance, the girl sits up briskly and speaks to me.

"No! You cannot call the human authorities!", she shouts at me before going completely pale and losing consciousness. I'm in absolute shock, the only thing I can think to do is remove her trench coat and inspect the wound. It doesn't look too deep, looks like the armour did a good job. I think I can see the bullet; I may be able to get it out with some tools. I grab a pair of tweezers and prepare to extract the bullet when she leaps back to consciousness at lightning speed; and with astonishing strength, forces me to the ground. Her eyes dart around as she surveys every inch of the room.

"Woah, are you alright?" I ask her. She turns her head and looks directly at me.

"Those", she demands, pointing at my hand "I require the use of that device, your highness". Stunned, I hand them to her. She reached into her wound with the tweezers to pull out the bullet. Her face is going red; she can barely handle the pain.

"Hey, you're still bleeding. You need to be more careful!", I yell as she jerks the pellet out of her stomach, turns pale once more, and collapses onto the couch.

I finish cleaning the mysterious woman's blood from the floor boards as she slowly awakens. She begins to re-evaluate the room before looking down at herself.

"You have disrobed me, your lordship!", she exclaims.

"I had to dress your wounds properly, your um… armour? Yeah, it was in the way", I say. "Don't worry, it's all I did; nothing more". She looks at me sceptically. "So who are you? Why were you wearing that weird metal armour?", She looks at me with her quiet green eyes.

"My name is Mera; I wear this armour to protect myself from the hazards of this place", she explains before remembering she is dressed only in her underwear. "Do you have any garments I may acquire until further notice, your majesty?". I turn a rose red and reply,

"Oh… Of course, of course. I'll go and get something". I go to my room to collect a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt. Why does Mera speak so properly? Is she foreign? Why does she keep calling me my highness, and my majesty? Maybe she's a crazy foreigner. I return to find Mera sitting patiently on the couch. I hand the clothing to her, trying to be polite and not stare at her radiant body. She notices and begins to speak.

"Does my physical appearance bother you in some way?", she asks with curious eyes.

"W-what? S-s-sorry?", I struggle to reply.

"Excuse me your lordship, but does my physical appearance bother you? You continue to look at my chest".

"What, no! It's j-just that you're very beautiful". She nods with a serious expression on her face.

"Well, I thank you for the compliment; you are very handsome as well Arthur, my lord". I start to redden in the face before realising she knowns my name. How does she know my name? As I perk up to ask, there is an aggressive knock on the door. I pull the door open expecting to shoo away some solicitors, when I am met with the barrel of a handgun almost pressed against my forehead.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

Before I could react to the gun being jammed in my face, Mera leaps at the figure with the weapon and forces him to the ground outside. He sees Mera's bandages and strikes it with super-human strength. She shows a shocked expression, clutches her abdomen, and keels over into a foetal position. The armed figure stands and I see he is covered in sleek, dark blue armour, with some sort of emblem that looks like an upside-down 'V' shape. He lifts his gun, pointing it at Mera's face. Before he pulls the trigger I knock him to the ground, grab him by the arm and throw him high into the air. He lands with a loud thud, but gets back up as though nothing had happened. Rather than attack, he stood as still as a rabbit gazing into oncoming headlights. Quickly snapping out of this trance, he ran and leaped into the ocean, and in the blink of an eye he was gone.

Mera lay in front of the lighthouse, unconscious, and hurt. I carry her inside and lay her on my bed. She howls in pain as I redress her bandages, that punch caused some serious damage. I sit beside her as she regains consciousness, I need answers and I know she can provide. The guy who attacked us wasn't heavily armed, he just had a small handgun. His armour was form fitting, and he survived such a long fall. Maybe he was an assassin, but sent for who?

"Are you okay?", I hear a soft, angelic voice coming from the bed. It's Mera, she is awake and trying to stand up. I rush to her side and lower her back down slowly.

"You mustn't move, your wound may reopen", she looks at me with genuine concern,

"Are you okay, my lord?". I just have a few bruises and scrapes,

"I'm fine, you seem to have suffered the hardest, stay right there I'll go call an ambulance",

"No! You must not contact the human authorities",

"Why not?". Mera lets out an exhausted sigh and looks me directly in the eyes,

"I am part of the Atlantean Royal Guard, and I have been tasked to protect you from any and all harm",

"I think the blood loss is effecting your brain".

"No, this is real", she produces a medallion out of thin air, and places it into my hand. "You are the rightful heir to the Atlantean throne",

"How? I don't even- ", but she cuts me short,

"Think about it. You are incredibly strong, you have tough skin, you can breathe under water. Look, you've seen the power that Orin possesses, that assassin was sent to kill you. He's most certainly gone back to Orin to tell him of your location, and who knows what Orin could do with that information. We need to get you out of here and safely to Atlantis. Please just give me a chance". I look down and see her hands are still clasping onto mine. She slowly let's go, leaving the golden medallion in my hand. It has a magnificent city etched into it with a large "A" for Atlantis in the background. I see the desperation in Mera's eyes, she really believes I need to come with her. I prepare to answer when I see Mera's eyes widen at the sight of something out of the window behind me. She grabs be by the shoulders and pulls me to the with her hand across my mouth. She crawls to the window and as she raises her head to see what was outside the window smashes into small glass shards as something comes hurtling through the window. At first it thought it was a rock until a blinking red light caught my eye. Before I can react, Mera covers me as the explosive detonates. My ears are ringing as Mera guides me to the back door. I look behind me and see 5 more men in black armour storm into the lighthouse. When we get outside Mera is clutching her bullet wound,

"Quick now, jump!", she commands,

"What about you?"

"Don't worry, I'll make it. Go. Now!", she forces me off the edge, and I plummet into the crashing waves below. As I fall through the air, I look up to see a giant explosion. I see the lighthouse collapsing as I plunge into the water. I begin swimming to the shore to find Mera when I hear something hit the water. I look beneath me and see a sinking body with long, beautiful red hair rippling in the water. I swim down to her and see she is unconscious; I try to wake her up when a large wall of concrete crashes into the water next to me. The lighthouse is crumbling into the sea; we need to get somewhere safe. I grab hold of Mera and swim down to an old cave, dodging large masses of lighthouse. We make it through to an abandoned ship, this is somewhere I like to go when I need time to myself; but for now it will serve as a safe haven for Mera and I. Today my life flipped on its head. How on earth did I get into this mess? Less than a few hours ago I was just a freak, Arthur Curry, son of the lighthouse keeper. Now all of a sudden a beautiful stranger is shot at my doorstep and claims I'm the heir to the throne of Atlantis. If it weren't for all these assassins showing up and the lighthouse falling to pieces, this would be too hard to believe.

"Arthur, my king", I hear from the banks where I left Mera to rest. "Where are we?"

"This is an old cave under the lighthouse I found when I was a kid", she keeps her eyes focused on me as I speak. "I come here when I need to be alone or need time to think".

She nods and begins to undress, taking off the shirt and pants I gave her.

"Um… w-what are you doing?", I ask completely flustered.

"I am discarding these garments; they will only slow our swimming down. They are impractical", she looks down at my body. "I suggest you do the same".

My face turns cherry red. I take off my shirt and leave my pants on embarrassed.

"So… where exactly will we swimming to?", I ask.

"We will need to get flexsuits, I stored a pair not too far from the lighthouse. Once we have those we will head to Atlantis, where you will meet with your mother and she will appoint you king", she catches me looking at her body. "Quite honestly my lord, have you never seen the body of a female?"

"What- no. I mean- It was an accident. I. I mean, sorry"

"No need to worry your lordship, all is forgiven", she says with a grin on her face. "We should get moving, staying in one place for too long is a bad idea".

We emerge from the cave to find the entire lighthouse in pieces laying at the bottom of the ocean. We can see flashing lights on the shoreline, the police have obviously come to investigate the explosion. We swim around the rubble; side by side trying to avoid being seen. After swimming for around ten minutes she leads me to a large crevice on the sea floor. It is too narrow for two people at once, so Mera swims ahead and guides me. We reach what looks like an empty cavern; Mera moves aside a large rock and reveals a tunnel. We swim until the water becomes shallow and climb onto dry rock. Mera lights some sort of lantern and the dark room becomes tinted turquoise. There is a locked chest that Mera heads towards. She pulls a stone from the wall and reveals a small pigeon hole; she reaches into it and turns a confused expression. Resting her head in the palm of her hand she curses under her breath.

"What's the matter?", I ask her.

"The key, it's not here", she says disappointed. "I forgot to put it back. It would have been my coat pocket". I pick up the stone she pulled from the wall and rest it on my shoulder.

"How about we try what I like to call… percussive maintenance", I drop the stone onto the lock, and it violently shatters. "There, problem solved". She looks at me and giggles.

"I guess that works too"

"I like your laugh", I shout suddenly, with no self-control. Mera's eyes fixate on the hard stone beneath her feet as her cheeks turn blush. She clears her throat.

"Let's get to work". She pulls out three pieces of armour, and hands two to me. "I'm sorry it isn't much", she apologises. "It's all I could carry". She hands me a pair of green leggings and gloves to match. We turn backs to one another as we get changed; I try to control myself but I catch a short glance of Mera as she undresses. I quickly look away embarrassed and continue to put on the armour.

"Alright, are we all ready?", Mera asks enthusiastically. I turn to see her in a tight, green one piece set of armour, that accentuates her body to no end.

"When we get to Atlantis I will get you your traditional royal chest piece", Mera says to me. As she reaches over to close the chest she reaches in and says, "Oh, I almost forgot, you'll need this to get into the palace". She passes me a golden belt with the same symbol as the one on those assassins. As I put it on I begin to ask,

"So when we get to Atlantis, how is this going to go? Will my mother be waiting for me? Will there be some sort of ceremony?". Mera is about to answer when someone else does instead.

"When you get to Atlantis, it will be for your public execution!". We turn to see two of the men who attacked the lighthouse. One of them pounces on me, and before Mera can tackle him off me the other one knocks her to the ground. I struggle as the assassin holds his forearm to my throat. I knee him in the gut and pin him to the ground. He tries to wrestle out of my hold but I punch him in the stomach and he curls up winded. As he props himself up I kick his arm and he falls back down; I kick him twice in the head and knock him out. I turn to see Mera lying on the floor, blood dripping from her nose and a cut across her cheek. I try to run to her side but the other assassin is approaching her with a glass blade. They only intend to take _me_ alive. I run and push him to the ground, he tries to strike me in the ankle but I dodge and trip over. He holds me down with one hand and raises the blade above his head. I lift my arm up and try to hold the assassins arm up. He is stronger than me, the knife slowly inches towards my throat before he is swept away in a large pillar of water; he knocks his head against the rock wall and falls unconscious. I look over to Mera and see her eyes glowing blue with her hands outstretched controlling the water. The begins to cover the both of us; it washes away my bruises and heals Mera's bullet wound and cut. The water falls and Mera collapses exhausted. I catch her and hold her head in my lap.

"I did most of the attacking there, I thought _you_ were supposed to be protecting _me_ ", I say jokingly. Her eyes flutter open and she looks up at me.

"I try my best, your lordship. But alas I mustn't invalidate the King of Atlantis with my superior fighting skill", she replies with a chuckle. She sits up light headed and looks at the two assassins. "Let us bind these soldiers and find out the knowledge they possess.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

"So those guys are soldiers?" I ask.

"Yes, they are also part of the Atlantean Guard. I don't know why they would be here to attack you, unless- ", she is interrupted by one of the bound soldiers.

"What in blazes is going on here?". We turn and see him struggling; Mera approaches him slowly.

"Why is the Atlantean Guard attacking prince Arthur Curry?", she asks creeping towards him, her eyes beginning to glow. "Answer me! Or you will be committing treason against our Queen. Why?". She creates about a dozen long spikes out of the water around her and points them at him.

"Our Queen", he laughs. " _Your_ Queen is dead; our true leader has taken the throne". The spikes fall into a puddle on the ground as an expression of uneasiness sweeps over Mera. The soldier laughs even louder in her face.

"What's the matter? Are you and your _'Prince'_ all alone? Boohoo, go and cry to your bitch of a queen - oh wait". Mera's eyes turn a bright, electric blue as the water spikes reform and instantly pierce the soldiers body. Her eyes return to normal as she turns towards me.

"I'm so sorry, we can't go to Atlantis", she says; her head hanging in misery.

"W-why not? Are we just going to trust what this guy says?" I ask her.

"Listen to me Arthur, I was instructed to keep you out of harm's way, no matter the consequences; the Queen's death changes none of that. Going to Atlantis now would be suicide"

"Am I now allowed a say in any of this?!" I yell suddenly. She looks at me and I sigh. "Can I at least go to Orin and tell him I don't want to cause trouble?"

"Arthur, you do not understand. There is a reason Queen Atlanna didn't what Orin to take the throne. He will be the worst king to ever rule over Atlantis. We can either flee or you can claim the throne, which we have already decided is a bad idea. There is no negotiating with him. He knows you are the rightful heir, that's why he has been sending the Atlantean Guard to try and remove you from the equation", she lets out a long, sad sigh before continuing. "I'm sorry; I have to keep you safe, even if it means means letting Orin be king."

"Why don't you- "

"No Arthur, there is no discussion here. I was ordered to protect you"

"If you have to protect me, then why don't you come with me?" I ask.

"If that is an offer, I would have to politely refuse your highness"

"It's not an offer", I say as I reach for her hands. "This is an order"

"I am under oath to follow the command of Atlantean royalty", she says looking me in the eyes placing her hands in mine. "I will follow you to whatever end. King Arthur". Hearing the passion in her voice, I can tell this is more than just an obligation to her.

"So which way to Atlantis?" I ask eagerly.

We swim through beautiful coral reefs on our long journey to the city of Atlantis. Mera is swimming closer to me, with a water construct ready. When we make it to the outer most parts of the city, I could barely believe my eyes. It was magnificent, shimmering in the light like a polished gem. I look to Mera pointing towards an old stone structure. We swim towards the structure and enter what looks like an ancient temple; we enter and Mera closes the door behind us. I look around the seemingly empty room as Mera lifts a floor tile and pulls out a scale armour chest piece.

"You really are fond of these hidey holes" I say jokingly. She smiles and hands me the garb.

"This belonged to the very first King of Atlantis. Now it belongs to you, King Arthur". It's scaled and sort of lustrous like Mera's armour. I bring it towards me and it looks like it would fit perfectly. I put it on and Mera hands me another pair of gloves.

"Put these on too, they will help you harness your abilities", she says.

"How do you know if I'll make a good king or not?" I ask putting on the new pair of gloves.

"Arthur, I have watched you, and you are honest, trustworthy, confident, compassionate and inspiring. I would gladly put my fate into your hands", she replies inches away from me, looking me in the eyes, grasping my hands. She snaps out of this trance like behaviour and turns away embarrassed.

"My apologies my King, forgive me for I am sorry". I pull her in for a long, wistful embrace. When we let go of one other our eyes meet.

"Now let's go and get my throne back"

We enter the city to see no guards at all, Mera seems suspicious of how quiet it is. As we approach the throne room an entire squadron quickly surround us. Mera turn back to back, ready to fight.

"Mera, you are harbouring a criminal under the suspicion of treason against our king. We suggest you step away from the offender so we may spare your life". Mera's eyes begin to glow as a strong current radiates from her body knocking the men down.

"Go Arthur, find Orin and take back what is rightfully yours"

"What about you- ". She cuts me off.

"Just go! They won't kill me" she shouts, unsure of her own words. Before I could even think I pulled her in and we kissed for a second, before she used a current of water to push me away. I see her defending herself with no trouble as I am pushed through the water. I turn to the large doors of the throne room and take a deep breath before I open them. I see Orin sitting on the throne at the end of the room with a silver staff in hand. He is wearing scale armour much like my own, but purple and black instead. As I approach, he stands.

"You must be Arthur then", I nod as he speaks. "And you have come back to take my place on the throne? What a foolish decision"

"Yes, I am the rightful heir and I will- ". He raises his hand and lifts me by the throat with water.

"So you think just because you are the son of my _whore_ sister – it disgusts me to even call her my relative – Just because you were her son, you think that you should be the ruler of the seven seas you half breed scum?". I can feel surges of after anger every word he says. "So you were just living your worthless human life and all of a sudden some bitch comes along and tells you some fantasy stories, and now you want take _my_ throne? I don't think so". He releases me and I fall to the floor.

"How dear you say that about my mother, and Mera"

"You never even knew her, why is it that you all of a sudden care about that bitch?". I launch myself towards the throne, but he moves out of the way. He raises the silver staff and a strong current of electricity surges through the water and knocks me to the ground. With faded vision I see him standing over me.

"So predictable", he says as he points the staff at me and shocks me unconscious.

"Arthur… Arthur… Arthur!" I hear a voice crying out to me. I open my eyes and blink rapidly at the brightness. My eyes adjust and I look around what looks like a prison cell. The air is dry and there is no water in sight. "Arthur!" I hear Mera's voice from across the room. Her scale armour is torn, she has multiple cuts and bruises.

"Mera! Are you alright?", I yell to her. She looks extremely fatigued, but a small grin appears on her face.

"Well I'm better now, knowing you are okay", she croaks.

"Are you sure, you look extremely unwell"

"They've drained all of the water from this room, I've spent the past hour trying to construct a key out of my body water". She is looks sickly and pale.

"You didn't have to do that", I say. "Save your energy, when they give us a meal eat yours and I will save mine, okay?". She nods and lies on her side, struggling to breathe. Hours pass, and Mera doesn't seem to be getting any better, before a guard comes in with a meal. He places a tray in front of both of us and waits. I see Mera devouring her food and regaining energy, I eat all I can and hold a small cup or water in my mouth.

"Are you not eating this?", the guard asks. I shake my head. "Alright then, suit yourself". He collects the trays and leaves the room, the door locking behind him. I look at Mera and see she is getting better. She stands and recuperates before nodding at me. I spit the water out of my mouth, Mera holds it in place and forms a key to unlock our cells. When I get out and she unlocks the exit door she falls faint and lands in my arms. I pick her up and sneak out of the cell area. As I reach the door to outside, a guard spots me; he sounds the alarm. I escape to find the compound is on an island in the middle of the ocean. I dive into the water, with Mera in arm and swim until we are well away from the prison; I lay Mera on a bed of coral and take a moment to think. We survived, but where do we go from here?


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

"Arthur?", I swim to Mera and urge to lay and rest. "Where are we my King?", she asks, looking deeply at me with her trusting green eyes; her beautiful red hair flowing with the current.

"Off the coast of Amnesty Bay, where you found me", I reply. She looks at me surprised.

"Why? The lighthouse was destroyed, there is nothing left here". She looks confused as I smirk.

"Well… the only money I have left… is right here". I pull out a small chest from underneath the coral. I open it and her eyes widen, it is filled with the gold coins I have found diving over the years.

"You have Atlantean currency?", she asks, shocked. I nod as she begins to study the doubloons. "Some of these date back to the first king"

"I don't really care; we don't have to sell those ones then". She looks at me surprised.

"You are not going to take back the throne?"

"Oh no, I am. But I'll need time… to be trained"

"Who on this earth would be able to train you?"

"You said these gloves could help me harness my abilities, so you clearly know what you're doing. I will have to fight for the throne, so have train me how", I look at her anxious body language. "I mean… if you don't mind of course". She smiles warmly and swims close to me. "Your wish is my command, your lordship". She snaps out of this trance, swims back and blushes.

"You look cute when you blush", I say with no self-control.

"Look we haven't the time for this inappropriate. Let us turn this into your _American currency_ ".

I find a phone box outside of a bank and call an old collector I met when I was younger, while Mera waits, reading the electric exchange board.

"So, how'd ya come across this stuff?", he asks.

"Oh, I found it diving off the coast a week or two ago" I half lie.

"Hm… Alright. I can get you a generous million for it" I was about to accept when Mera began to talk.

"Generous? Excuse me but the age of these coins along with the current gold standard would make these coins worth at least 2.6 million dollars. Are you trying to con us?". I pull her aside.

"Look, one million is plenty. We just need a place to stay, some food, and not to mention some clothes". She looks down at her body; we are still wearing our scale armour.

"Very well my king"

"I'm sorry about that" I say.

"No need to apologise, your lady friend knows a bit about trading treasure", he says. "And she is absolutely right, I should be the one apologisin' for tryna dupe ya. How about this, I give you guys three million, and nobody says a word about what just happened. How does that sound?"

"That sounds fantastic", I reply astonished.

"Alrighty then, will that be in cash or cheque?".

First we head to clothing store to find something to wear. I get some simple denim jeans, a t-shirt and a hooded sweatshirt; nothing special. I sit and wait for Mera, and when she comes out of the changing room my jaw drops to the floor. She was in a beautiful tight, low-cut green shirt and a pair of navy blue skinny jeans. She was pulling at the shirt and running the pants.  
"Arthur? This material feels strange". I walk towards her.

"Don't worry, it's just different, you'll get used to it". The store clerk clears his throat and begins to speak.

"Well are you going to buy it or not?". I nod and bring the tags to him.

As we leave the store Mera has her eyes fixated on mine.

"Where are we going now?" she asks.

"I dunno, you hungry?"

"I have worked up quite an appetite", she looks back at me. "Where is food acquired here on the surface?"

"Well there's this seafood place my dad used to take me to when I was a kid".

"Is it any good?"

"What are you talking about, of course it's good". She has an expression as though there is a bad taste in her mouth. "Don't be so cynical, you'll probably like it". She begins to smile, and agrees.

When we arrive we are seated in a booth by a window, overlooking the ocean. Mera is intrigued by all of the fishing ornaments hung on the walls. She sees many pictures of mythical sea creatures, and cocks her head with a puzzled look on her face when she finds the one labelled 'Mermaid'.

Is that how you surface dwellers imagine us? As some sort of half human, half fish abomination?", she finishes with a disgusted look on her face.

"Well yeah, I used to this that too. Until I met you of course. Now I know mermaids are possibly the most beautiful creatures on the planet". As I say this I look at her and see her blush.

Mera orders lobster, and I order fish and chips like I did as a child. When our food arrives to the table I grab a chip and look at Mera. She studies the crustacean for a good five minutes before starts eating it. I shake my head and laugh as I bring the now cold chip to my mouth. But Mera hits it out of my hand.

"Wait, I must taste this food first, in case it has been poisoned". I look at her as though she is completely insane, but she continues anyway. I roll my eyes and let her take a chip.

"So, sharing food already. Does this mean we're going steady?". She looks at me confused. "Guess that's a surface joke". When we finish eating and pay I ask the waitress if she knows of any cheap hotels in the area; she points down the street and we see in the distance and we see a sign that reads 'HOTEL' with blinking lights "Vacancy". We arrive at the front desk and rent a room, I haggle the guy to get a cheaper room; who knows what other expenses we may come across. When we get the key and walk to the door, Mera looks around, alert. We reach the room and her jaw drops appalled. She begins to walk back the front desk, but I grab her arm.

"Mera, what do you think you're doing?". She sighs and says.

"My lord, this is no place for royalty. There must have been a mistake". Her face changes from an expression of disappointment to one of surprise. "My King, you accept these conditions?"

"Listen, I only figured out I was a king today and it took multiple beatings and a destroyed lighthouse to realise. You really think this guy would know or care? I'm not royalty here, plus he wouldn't even believe Atlantis exists. And I don't need much, this is plenty". She reads my up and down, then decides to come into the room. The first thing I notice is that it's clean, which is good; and there is only one bed. Mera also notices this and begins making a separate bed on the floor.

"Um… Mera, what are you doing?"

"Making somewhere for me to sleep of course"

"You can't sleep on the floor. We can just share the bed". She is about to complain, but she stops herself. When we get into the bed Mera tries to distance herself from, but since it is a relatively small bed that distance isn't very far.

"So Mera… what was it like growing up in Atlantis?", I ask her. She turns and faces me to answer.

"Not very exciting. I would just go to school and go home. Day in day out. That's why I was trusted enough to become head of the Atlantean Guard"

"What about your friends? What were they like?"

"Oh, I didn't have any friends". Her eyes suddenly widen as though she had said too much.

"Really? I couldn't imagine you having no friends"

"Yeah… I was always made fun of because I focused so hard on my work, and didn't have any time for friends"

"I'm not too different. I would always pay attention in class and get made fun of for having no friends. They'd call me 'Light keeper Boy'. Which was fine at first, I could just ignore them, but then I couldn't take it once my dad died at sea". I hear Mera sniffling and holding in tears. I stop talking and wrap my arms around her slim, warm body. She says nothing, but sinks her face into my chest and weeps. I hold her tightly and begin to hum a song my father would sing to me as a child to make her feel better; I close my eyes and listen to her cry herself to sleep.


End file.
